The unpopular Pinera's right-wing bloc suffered a loss inlocal elections last month, which likely accelerated thedeparture of presidential hopefuls bracing for leftist formerPresident Michelle Bachelet to make a comeback bid.

Public Works Minister Laurence Golborne, a charismaticbusinessman, and Defense Minister Andres Allamand, a seasonedpolitician, who are seen as the right's best chance to retainthe presidency, both left the government.

"(Golborne and Allamand) are taking up what I see as themost noble of duties, missions and responsibilities that acitizen of our country can undertake: aspiring to thepresidency," Pinera said at a ceremony to mark the cabinetchange. "Go travel our country, region by region ... to conquera new majority of Chileans."

Many Chileans hoped Pinera, a former airline magnate, wouldtackle social inequalities in Chile more effectively than hispredecessors, but polls show they are disappointed so far.

National Heritage minister Catalina Parot also left inPinera's third sweeping cabinet change, which is not expected tosignificantly affect policy in the world No. 1 copper producer.

GEARING UP FOR 2013 ELECTION

Pinera, a billionaire is rated the most unpopular leader inChile since the end of Augusto Pinochet's dictatorship in 1990.He has been battered by protests demanding free and improvededucation, stricter environmental laws and greater regionalautonomy.

Under Chilean law, Pinera is banned from running for asecond consecutive term. The far more popular Bachelet, now thehead of a United Nations entity that advocates gender equalityand the empowerment of women, has not said whether she will runagain for the presidency.

Both Golborne and Allamand shot to fame in adversecircumstances.

Former mining minister Golborne's management of thesuccessful two-month operation to hoist 33 trapped miners fromthe bowels of the earth turned the former CEO of retailerCencosud into one of the country's most popularpoliticians.

Allamand gained media exposure after a small plane crashedinto the Pacific Ocean off the remote Juan Fernandez islands inSeptember last year, killing all 21 aboard, including a local TVpresenter.

Recent polls show Bachelet is more popular than either ofthe right-wing politicians, but analysts cautioned that thepediatrician-turned-politician is unlikely to breeze back to thepresidential palace, should she run.

High levels of absenteeism in municipal elections and lowpopularity ratings for both the right and left highlight manyChileans' discontent with politics.

Chile's economy, Latin America's poster child for stability,is set to grow at a brisk 5 percent this year. But incomeinequality has barely budged since 1990 despite windfalls fromcopper and ranks among the highest of members of theOrganization for Economic Cooperation and Development.